New Immigration Policies in Walloon Region

• Work authorization. The maximum validity of work authorization for foreign highly skilled workers increased to three years, subject to a yearly audit by the government. 

Impact. Employers and highly skilled foreign workers no longer need renew work and residence permits annually. Employers should be ready for an annual audit of payroll documents 

• Access to labor market. Locally hired workers are no longer restricted to specific employers and do not have a time limit on work authorization after four years of employment. This period can be reduced to three years for nationals of a country with an international or labor agreement with Belgium and to two if they have accompanying family members.  

Impact. Employees and employers should benefit from more flexibility in the labor market once a foreign national gains unlimited access to the labor market. 

• In-country application submission. Qualifying foreign nationals can apply for work permits in Belgium, where previously, they had to apply from abroad. 

Impact. Foreign nationals should ensure they have legal permission to be in Belgium (for example, as a tourist, business traveler, or similar) before submitting their application. Note that applicants will not be able to work while their application is pending. 

Background 

• Belgian trends. These policies are similar to those implemented in Flanders in January 2019, with some important differences. The policy changes are part of the regionalization process that is the first change in 30 years in Belgium aimed at modernizing and adapting local policies to address local labor market issues, particularly the lack of suitable highly skilled workers in some sectors. In 2014, legislative authority related to economic migration in Belgium shifted from the federal to regional authorities to address specific issues in regional labor markets, resulting in the ability for each of Belgium’s regions to set their own individual salary thresholds and adjust its policies to address specific regional concerns.  

• Global trends.  The changes are in line with other countries in the region and globally that have relaxed labor market requirements for highly skilled workers and introduced regional immigration policies to better reflect local needs. For example, Poland has waived labor market testing for shortage occupations, Finland has removed labor market tests for highly skilled career changers and the United Kingdom is  considering removing labor market testing requirements for sponsored workers from 2021. In addition, Australia has further regionalized the immigration system this year and the United Kingdom is currently reviewing the need for regional salary thresholds.